Bankers have been blaming themselves for their troubles in public. Behind the scenes, they have been taking aim at someone else;

admin2016-01-10  36

问题     Bankers have been blaming themselves for their troubles in public. Behind the scenes, they have been taking aim at someone else; the accounting standard-setters. Their rules, moan the banks, have forced them to report enormous losses, and it’s just not fair. These rules say they must value some assets at the price a third party would pay, not the price managers and regulators would like them to fetch.
    Unfortunately, banks’ lobbying now seems to be working. The details may be unknowable, but the independence of standard-setters, essential to the proper functioning of capital markets, is being compromised. And, unless banks carry toxic assets at prices that attract buyers, reviving the banking system will be difficult.
    After a bruising encounter with Congress, America’s Financial Accounting Standards Board(FASB)rushed through rule changes. These gave banks more freedom to use models to value illiquid assets and more flexibility in recognizing losses on long-term assets in their income statement. Bob Herz,the FASB’s chairman, cried out against those who "question our motives. "Yet bank shares rose and the changes enhance what one lobby group politely calls " the use of judgment by management.
    European ministers instantly demanded that the International Accounting Standards Board(IASB)do likewise. The IASB says it does not want to act without overall planning, but the pressure to fold when it completes it reconstruction of rules later this year is strong. Charlie McCreevy, a European commissioner,warned the IASB that it did "not live in a political vacuum" but "in the real word" and that Europe could yet develop different rules.
    It was banks that were on the wrong planet,with accounts that vastly overvalued assets. Today they argue that market prices overstate losses, because they largely reflect the temporary illiquidity of markets,not the likely extent of bad debts. The truth will not be known for years. But bank’s shares trade below their book value, suggesting that investors are skeptical. And dead markets partly reflect the paralysis of banks which will not sell assets for fear of booking losses, yet are reluctant to buy all those supposed bargains.
    To get the system working again,losses must be recognized and dealt with. America’s new plan to buy up toxic assets will not work unless banks mark assets to levels which buyers find attractive. Successful markets require independent and even combative standard-setters. The FASB and IASB have been exactly that, cleaning up rules on stock options and pensions, for example, against hostility from special interests. But by giving in to critics now they are inviting pressure to make more concessions.
According to Paragraph 4,McCreevy objects to the IASB’s attempt to______.

选项 A、keep away from political influences
B、evade the pressure from their peers
C、act on their own in rule-setting
D、take gradual measures in reform

答案C

解析 事实细节题。选项A是强干扰项,貌似是对第四段中“not in a political vacuum”的同义替换,但是与选项C相比,C选项更加符合本段的中心内容。因为本段并不是强调IASB不能摆脱政治影响,而是强调IASB想要自己独立地制定规则。当两个选项无法分清的时候,符合中心内容的才是正确答案。选项B为偷梁换柱,原文没有提来自同伴的压力(pressure from theirpeers),而是说“在今年下半年完成规则修订时必须屈服的压力”。选项D“在改革中采取渐进措施”属于无中生有。对于选项C,文章中讲欧洲部长对IASB的要求,提到了IASB对其的抵触情绪,但是(but)压力又很大(sttong),McCreevy警告IASB它不是“处在政治真空中”而是“在现实世界里”。这些内容的中心思想是:IASB想自己独立的制定规则(act on their own in rulesetting),而欧洲部长(包括McCreevy)又想命令其按自己意愿行为,所以C为正确答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/QwsZ777K
0

最新回复(0)